Davenport



J. D. BELL April 14, 1931.

DAVENPORT Filed May 14, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet INVENTOR.

J. D, BELL DAVENPORT April 14, 1931.

Filed May 14, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Aprill4, 1931. J D,BELL 1,800,496

Filed May 14, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 HE 11V Patented Apr. 1 4, 1 931"UNIT D S ATE PATENT OFFICE v JOSEPH n. BELL, or sen FRANCISCO, CALIFOIA DAVENPORT Continuation ofapplication Serial No. 706,066, filed April12, 1924. This application fi1ed May 14, 1928.'

- Serial No. 277,490.

This application is a continuation of my application for davenportsSerial No. 706,066, filed April 12, 1924. r a

This invention has to do with theprovision 5 of a simply constructed,comparatively inexpensive, strong and substantial sofa bed ordavenportwhich may be made up in the popular style known as aChesterfield, and toembody a full sized double folding bed of sturdyconstruction, which bed may be operated with comparative ease andfacility in being ex tendedfor use, or folded,with the full beddingequipment thereon, into a concealedpoi sition behind the seat and backmembers. ,Theiconstruction ofthe invention permits ofv the desirable andeffective use of a one piece foot member or bed end instead of the.separate leg and foot-board arrangement as. usually employedintheordinary sofa bed, which foot member provides for a more substantial, stronger and better appearing bed construction, and alsoserves as a'handle portion and facilitates theoperation of extending andcollapsing the bed.

The construction of the folding bed'is such that the full sized bed, endmembermay be adj ustably connected with the bed and will, whenthe bed isfolded, take up little or no room without in any manner rendering themore diflicult, said. foot piece being connected by links with the outersection of the folding bed and presented in upright position on theouter face of said section when the bed is folded. The presentation ofthe foot piece in this position, when. the bed is folded, provides fora. ready grasping of the-foot piece when it is desired to extendthebedand the force exerted thereon is transmitted to the bed in suchmanner that the lattermay be unfolded and extended with lesseifort onthe part of the operator and more smoothly than when the bedis otherwiseoperated. The

fact that the entire .bed end member is dis-v posed on the outerfaceofthe. outer bed sec-,

tion when the bed is folded and that said bed end does, not extendappreciably beyond the extremities of said bed section, permits.

of a compactfolding ofthe bed'as an entirety.

50 The one piece bed end of the ordinary bed operation of folding orcollapsing the bed type connected with the outer section of a sectionalfolding bedfas embodied in this invention,serves.a double purpose inthat beyond its function as a support for the end of the bed, itcooperates with the bed structure itself, in the operation of foldingand extendjects in view, the invention consists in the novelconstruction and combination of parts hereinafter described, illustratedinthe accompanying drawings, and set 'forth in the claimsheretoappended, it being understood that various changes in the form,proportion, size and minor details of'construction within the scope ofthe claims may be resorted. to

without departing from the spirit or sacrii ficing any of, theadvantages of the invention.

Referring to'the drawings: Fig. 1 represents a. cross sectionalzview ofasofa bed constructed in accordance with my invention shown as when thebed is folded and concealed, the structure being readyzfor" use as asofaor Chesterfield;

Fig. 2 is a similar sectional view showing in full lines the bed'as whenpartly extended,

and in dotted'lines as when in the next position preliminary to fullextension thereof.

I ,Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the bed frame I 1 as when fullyextended for useas a bed, certainparts being removed, the sofa frame,back and seat being shown in section.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of thebed as when extended. Fig. 5 is aside elevation of a modified form of the invention, parts being, showncrosssection. H v

The sofabed of this invention embodies the,

usual da'venport: or sofa frame 1, to'which is connected a sectional,folding mattressor bed frame 2, whichlatter consists of an outer section3, an innersection 4 and an 'inter'medi-' atesection 5, pivotedto theother sections; The section l is connected between its, ends with thedavenport or sofa frame 1 by links pivotally connected by suitable meansof connection generally designated 7 with the rear part of the davenportframe. The connections between the sectional bed frame and davenportframe are such that the bed frame may be extended into position of useas shown in Fig. 3, and also folded into concealed position as shown inFig. 1, said frame when in the latter position having the front and-rearsections 3 and4 disposed in upright position, slightly rearwardlyinclined, with the'intermediate section disposed in substantiallyhorizontal position. This folding is such that adequate space isprovided for the bedding A.

In association with the davenport frame is an invertible seat 8, whichis connected by suitable hinges 9 with the front board 10 of saidframe 1. A bar 11 is rotatably mounted in bearings 12 on the under sideof the seat member and has substantially right angu- .larly disposedend. portions 13 serving as links. The free ends of the portions 13 arepivoted to the intermediate bed section, or to the pivot connection ofsaid section, with the front section and as shown constituting the pivotmembers. The bar 11 serves as a spacing and bracing element, or in otherwords, as a yoke as well as a means of connection between the seatand'bed frame. WVhen the seat is swung upward and outward on its hinges,the portions 13 serve as links and pull on the bed frame so as to liftthe bed frame upward and outward and dispose the bed end member inposition to be grasped in order to complete the extension movement ofthe bed frame. The seat then supported by the portions 13, is loweredinto position shown in Figs. 2 and 3, with the legs 15 therefor restingon the floor. The outward swinging or overturning of the seat 8 swingsthe entire 'folded bed frame 2 around the rear end of the section 4: asafulcrum. The bed frame is thus bodily lifted out of the sofa. frame 1.The short section 5 in this position, is above the inverted seat 8. Inorder'to limit the swinging of the seat 8 and of the bed frame2,relative to each other, I provide stops 16 adjacent the hinged edge ofthe seat 8, which stops 16 extend upwardly, when the seat is overturned,so thatwhen the bed frame 2 is lifted out of the sofa. frame 1. thenthe'bed section 5 rests upon the stops 16 thereby preventing theunbalanced weight of the bed frame to swing the seat 8 rearwardly aroundits hinges. r

A back member 17 having-ears 18 is joined tobrackets 19 on the davenportframe 1 by links 20, andis adapted to be swung from a position of use asshown in Fig. 1 into an out of the way position inclined downwardly andrearwardly on the upper rear side of the frame 1. By means of retractilesprings 21 which arej oined at their ends to the brackets 19 on theframe 1 and-to the back member, said back member when moved past centeris maintained in its out of the way position so as to be safeguardedagainst falling back into position of use and possibly injuring anoccupant of the bed.

In carrying out my invention instead of using the usual separate leg andfoot board arrangement at the outer end of the bed frame, I provide aone piece bed end generally designated 22, which end is constructedsimilarly to the type of end used in the ordinary bed construction. Thisbed end is connected by links 23 and 24 to side members of the front bedsection 3. The links 23 extend from a point above the plane of the bedframewhenthe latter is extended downwardly and rearwardly to their pointof connection with said frame, whereasthe links 2 1 are longer than thelinks 23 and extend from apoint below the bed frame when extendedupward- 1y and inwardly to a point rearward of the corresponding endsof' the links 23; Thus, the solid one piece end piece when in uprightposition, as when'the bedis extended as" shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 4,extends above and below the bed and serves as a firm andsub- 9 stantialsupport for the outer end of the section. When the bed is folded asshown in Fig; 1, the inner and outer sections 'of'the bed lie inuprightposition with the bed end lying close agalnst the outer face ofthe outer section 3 and in a position such that it will not in any wayinterfere with the operation of the bed nor take up anappre'ciableamount of room. The outer section and bed end lie 2 in a rearwardlyinclined position, and to open the bed the back member is raised andmoved into position shown in Fig. 2, being held in v such position bythe action of the springs 21. The bed'en'd is then accessible andpresented so that it may be readily grasped and pulled outwardly Inpulling out on this bed end, the end swings on the links and thesectional bed is unfolded and extended. As the bed unfolds andyextends,the operator retaining his grasp on the bed end is permitted-to pull outuntil the bed is extended and at this time the frame assumes an, uprightposition for supporting the bed, as shown in Fig.3. The.

pull communicated'on'the bed'fra me through thebed end is such that asabove stated, the

operator need but pull directly outwardly in acomparatively straightline in orderto unfoldand extend'the bed, thus the operation ,ofextending the bed is made easier' and more simple and requires lessefi'ort on the part of the operator due to the use of the bed end as ahandle or lever portion while extending the bed.

As a means forinsuring the proper folds ing of the bed into smallcompass, I provide inclined guides 26 on'opposite sides, of the ltionsrearwardly.

sofa frame, adapted to be engaged by projec tions 27 extending outwardlyfrom the sides of the bed frame where the intermediate and front bedsections are joined and which, as shown, are the hinge members joiningsections 2 and 3. When the bed is partially folded,'the projectionsengage onthe rear face of the guides and travel downwardly andrearwardly so as to cause the sections to assume the collapsed foldedposit-ion shown in Fig. 1, and to be disposed as far rearwardly aspossible in order that the back and seat member-may be properly nestedin place. The tendency of the link portions 13 in the folding ofrthe bedis one that would cause the partially collapsed sections to be movedforwardly and downwardly, but the guide and projection arrangementovercomes this tendency and forces the said bed frame'sec- The method ofconnecting the seat with the bed frame is advantageous in that itprovides for a low mounting of the seat, a desirable feature inChesterfield construction. In other words, this arrangement provides fora rearward disposition of the bed when folded,'such that the seat may bemade as low as desired. I The position of the seat may be varieddependent upon the point of mounting ,the bar 11 with its portions 13 onsaid seat.

The leverage may be increased or decreased by changing this mounting. Itwill be noted that when the bed is collapsed,.the portions 13 swingrearwardly from their mountings inn the seat and when the bed isextended, said portions swing forwardly; in the first case providing fora rearward disposition of the bed frame; and in the latter case, for theforward projection of the frame when ex- ;tended, it being noted thatsaid portions 12 are disposed in the same positions or inclination, whenthe seat is in its operative or in operative position. The seat whenbeing swung lnto its operatlve position bears upon the front face of thefront bed section or the 5,,wedging or actuating element in the foldingoperation. Y

In Fig. 5, I have shown a modified form of construction of the inventionwherein the bed frame consisting of outer, intermediate and. rearsectionsQS, 29 and 30 respectively,

is mounted'in a sofa frame 31, in the same manner as the bed of thepreviously de- J scribed form of the invention. The seat member 3 andother elements, not shown, are

constructed and arranged in the identical manner as the previouslydescribed form of bed with the exception that the link portions 33 ofthe bar 34, corresponding to bar 11, which is rotatably mounted on theunder side of the seat 32, are connected with'the intermediate sectionata point forwardly'ofthe pivotconnec-tion of saidsection, with thefront section. This provides for disposal of the point of mountingof thelinks 33 on the seat at a point closer to the hinge 35 and increases theleverage action, making an easier action of extending the bed when theseat is swung on its hinge. By changing the'position of the linkportions 33, the thrust of said portions on the swinging of the seatinto operative position is such as to cause-the bed frame to swing wellrearwardly as well as v downwardly, without necessitating the employmentof the projections and guides as utilized in the form of the inventionpreviously described.

Having thus described this invention,

what I claim and desire to secure by Letters rearsection-to form apocketwhen the bed is folded, the rearv and the front sections being about'thesame length,-the intermediate section being shorter thanthe saidfirst 1sections; the rear end ofsaid seat pressing is folded; connectionsbetween the rear section and the sofaframe to hold andguide the saidrear section as the bed sections are extended and folded; and. pivotalconnections connecting thebottom of theseat to the pivthe inclined frontrearwardly when the bed i otal joints of the front sections with thesaid intermediate sections to swing the folded bed. frame around therear end of therear-section I as the seat is inverted.

.2. A sofa bed comprising a sofa frame; a front board therefor; afoldable bed frame having-two long end sections and a short middlesection connecting thelong end sect1ons;.connect1ons between the bedframes p 5 and sofa frame to permit thebed frame to be extended orfolded within the sofa frame; an

invertible seat member hinged to the front board; links connecting thebed frame and seat frame adapted tof lift and move outwardly the entirebedframe when-the seat is lifted and to support the bed frame at amidsection when the bed is extended, both of the end sections of the bedframe extending up war-dly above-the seat when the bed frame is V foldedwith the mid section in a substai'n.

tially horizontal position. 3. A sofa bed comprising a housing; in-

vertible seatinounted on one side of the housing; a foldable bed framehaving two substantially equal end sections and a shorter mid sectionpivotally connecting them, adapted to be extended as a bed or foldedwithin the housing; means pivotally connected to the under side of theseat and to the joints of the outer end sections with the short sectionsto lift the entire bedframe when the seat is lifted and to support thebed frame when it is extended, the end sections of the bed frame lyingclosely adjacent each other with the mid section substantiallyhorizontal when the bed is folded.

4 A sofa bed comprising a housing; a folding bed frame having two longe1 sections pivotally connected to a shorter mid section and capable offorming a bed or being folded into the housing; an overturning seathinged to the housing; a yoke carried thereby pivotally' connected tothe bed sections at the junction between the outer and intermediatesections for supporting the bed bottom when folded and when extended,the intermediate section lying horizontal when the bed is folded withthe longer sections extending upwardly therefrom above the seat whenfolded.

5. A sofa bed comprising a housing; a pivotal back; a folding bed framecomprising two end sections of substantially the same length; and ashorter mid section pivotally connecting the said frame being adapted tobe extended as a bed or folded within the housing; an invertible seatpivoted to the housing; links connecting said seat to the pivot points'between' the outer end sections and mid section adapted to raise theentire bed frame when'the seat is raised; and to support the bed. framewhen the seat is overturned; floor supports carried by said seatarranged to lie in an upwardly inclined position under the back when thebed is folded, and to bear against the bed frame.

6. A sofa bed'comprising a. housing; a folding bed frame having twolonger seetions and a shorter mid section pivotally connected to thehousing for the support of said foldable bed frame both in the foldedand unfolded position; pivotal connections between the seat and bedframe at the junction of the outer section and mid section, to lift thebed frame when the seat is lifted so as to 7 move the bed frameoutwardly around the rear end of the inner longer sections as a ful 7 Asofa bed comprising a sofa frame; a seat provided thereon to overturn; afolding bed frame consisting of two long-er sections tially verticalposition to a substantially hori- I zontal'position as the bed frame isopened.

pivotally connected to ashorter mid section to form a bed or like foldedin the sofa frame with one long section extending vertically, the midsection extending horizontally and the outer end section inclinedupwardly and backwardly; means to guide one end section in the sofaframe; links connecting the bed frame and seat arranged to support saidframe, both when the seat is used and when the seat is overturned, andmeans on the bottom of the seat for-engaging the mid sections when theseat is overturned so as to prevent the rearwardly swinging of thesea-taround its hinges by the weight of the folded bed from folded positionswings the entire folded bed frame outwardly around the said rear ends.as fulcrums; said rear end sections being moved from a verticalinto ahorizontal position by the unfolding of the bed sections;

and means extending from the bottom of the seat-for engagingthemidsection when the seat is overturned so as to prevent the rearwardswinging of the seat around its hinges by the weig t of the folded bedframe.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at SanFranciscmCalifornia, this 28th day of April, 1928.

JOSEPH D. BELL.

the bed being slidably pivoted in said hous-

